yeah, so there's a lot of rules on allisa's site...how 'bout here? hope not. I understand if it gets shut down here, I'll try then another site...

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by Natalia Rose. This was the only Raw food book our hospital library had and our public library had 1 that apparently has been checked out for the last 8 months because that's how long I've been waiting for the call that it's been returned.

Has anyone else read this book? I like it for a number of reasons, but I wondered what you all thought about something. You take a short quiz to get your transition number. This number tells you how to make the best transition into a 100% raw diet. For example; if you smoke, weigh 400 lbs, have only eaten chemicals your whole life (etc.etc.) and then instantly switch to a 100% raw food diet, your body is basically going to freak out and your going to have really horrible detox symptoms and your body can't get rid of the toxins fast enough, so (something about) storing these toxins in your body making your toxicity even worse. (I think that was the gist of it). Anyway, on a scale of 1-5 (1 being totally raw, 5 being dude, just eat a carrot....PLEASE!, I came out at a 3...meaning I should be eating raw foods all day until dinner, at which point I should eat something cooked (like brown rice and lightly steamed veggies).

Do you guys think if I follow her "rules" I would bypass extreme detox symptoms or have them anyway. I'm at home 24/7 with two babies by myself and frankly do not have "time" or "energy" for bad headaches/nausea or whatever else gets thrown at me. I'd like to just go 100% Raw, but stories of detox freak me the heck out. I've had to put off my start date because I've had no food in the house, but I went shopping today and am ready to start tomorrow!!!!

Hi Sarah,
I'm sorry they deleted it on you, thats so awful of them I'm sure everyone's more understanding here though

I think its sounds fine I find transitioning more gradually always works best for me too Just try to find a comfortable level and go from there to as high a percent as you want

Good luck I how it goes really well for you

I love her book, and I've checked it out of my library about 4 times..until it is no longer avail...probably someone lost or pilfered it. I have it on back order at the local bookstore..won't be in until this month sometime.

You might really like to check out the diet at [www.hacres.com] as it's all raw for the day, and if you feel like a need to eat cooked, they tell you what is good to have. They also have a lot of info. on their site.

I went thru a rough detox when I first went raw..so I don't think you really want to go thru that with young kids you are caring for.

If you eat mostly raw, then a cooked meal once a day, that will help slow down the detoxing, and still be very healthy for you.

Love,
Prism

While the detox stories may sound awful, do you really want those toxins hanging out in your body, causing you to gain weight, lose health, and perhaps someday have cancer or some other chronic disease? As Dr Doug says, "there are no contraindications to healthful living"

The quicker you quit putting toxins in your body, the sooner your health will rise.

The other thing Doug says, "If someone were banging their head against the wall, would you have them stop slowly over time so that they could gradually feel better, or would you just go cold turkey?".

In my own experience, it took me about 5 months of transitioning from an unhealthy SAD diet to an unhealthy raw diet. Once I was all raw, it took me another 5 months to find a healthy raw diet, versus the unhealthy on I had. When I heard about 80/10/10, I converted immediately, and became sick for a while (I wrote about this here). But after that detox, my health soared.

It was a process getting my fat down to under 10%. Initially I did it, but there was some element of control going on there. I let go of the control, and after a while, it was consistently under 20%. Then after a while, I wasn't eating fat everyday, except perhaps in the winter. Then at some point, I wasn't eating fat everyday, even during the winter. Something just shifted. I still allow myself a occasional trip to Cafe Gratitude for a fatty gourmet raw dinner (mostly for entertainment rather than nutrition).

I've not read the book, but it does sound like good advice. Although I wouldn't recommend adding new types of cooked food to your diet, just gradually add more raw food to your current diet. Go at a pace which is good for you. If you're eating raw till dinner and feeling good, then start eating more raw at dinner. I think having a raw salad with your dinner is always a good idea.

Rob

--
Rob Hull - Funky Raw
My blog: [www.rawrob.com]

thank you everyone....I think my home will be found here....I'm not one for a lot of rules, lol.

sarah

Bryan I'm surprised to see you suggest what I think you're suggesting. Go 100% raw now. And on an 80 / 10 / 10 plan. She's in a situation where she doesn't want major detox. If she has big detox symptoms and can't deal with them well, then that's not detox.

Maybe I misunderstood you. You always seem so rational.



This way is not compatible with Zen practice. This way IS Zen practice. - Dr. Doug Graham

Nothing whatsoever should be attached to. - Buddha

mama2obaj Wrote:
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> I came out at
> a 3...meaning I should be eating raw foods all day
> until dinner, at which point I should eat
> something cooked (like brown rice and lightly
> steamed veggies).
>

That sounds similar to what I did and I still got detox symptoms, but it was pretty manageable.

TroySantos,

Its funny, because I shared what I did, which was to take 5 months to transition from SAD to raw, then an additional 5 months to move from high fat raw to low fat raw. So it took me 10 months to arrive at 80/10/10. And then, I went further to state that it took me a long time (years) to get my fat down to 10%.

I don't think I was recommending that anyone plop into a 100% 80/10/10 diet on day 1. In fact, my own experience was that it is a process.

The fear of detox is a bit irrational. I would be more afraid of the consequences of not detoxing, leaving those carcinogens in my body, and developing cancer someday. Detox is not such an unpleasant process, cancer on the other hand sounds nasty to me. I enjoyed all the sleep I got during my detox. I went on a vacation that I loved during that time. The other thing I got to learn was how to surrender. This is something that serves me over and over again.

Also, the detox I got was pretty extreme, but that was after 40 years of SAD living, plus the recent 20 years came with very little sleep and exercise and lots of fatty restaurant cooked SAD foods. Plus I was drinking a lot of coffee so that I could work harder. Compared to the levels of abuse that came on the intoxication side, the detoxification was gentle in comparison.

couple questions...what is 80/10/10? (and other ratios)?

secondly, I normally wouldn't mind some detox symptoms, but if it came at me full force, I'd lose my mind--quite literally. I'm already a stress case(disolving marriage and trying to manage these small children with LITERALLY NO HELP) , so being afraid of detox isn't irrational to me...I want to be healthier, but I don't want to get depressed (again) or be so irritable that I take it out on my kids (which frankly is quite likely if I get really sick...I mean, who knows I may not get detox symptoms at all...who knows.

If I did start having detox problems, is it something that a little cooked food would make feel better on that day? Or is there anything a holistic health care provider could help with? My chiropractor does A LOT with energy work, sound therapy, detox etc.

OK,lastly (and thank you so much for your help, everyone--I know I can do this!) is there a time frame for the detox to come and go? Like, if I make it 3 weeks without a problem, then I probably won't have any detox problems? Or could I be fine and then have a problem 6 months into it?

thank you everyone!
Sarah

Sarah,

It really depends on how healthy you aready are. If you are a vegetarian, you will have less to detox than a person on SAD. If you are vegan, even less than a vegetarian. If you are a whole food vegan, then less that a regular vegan. It also depends on how many drugs, stimulants, and other toxins are ingested. So there is a spectrum.

It may be that your detox symptoms last 1 week, and then they are gone. Thats it. The people who have continuous detox symptoms, that is they have symptoms that never disappear, are not detoxing their previous lifestyles, they are detoxing last night's dinner. This means in fact they are actually intoxicating themselves with their unhealthy raw diets.

For a healthy person, who doesn't drink or take stimulants, the detox will be short. Mine lasted 4 months, but I was far from miserable, I just needed a lot of sleep. And I started out with SAD and had lots of unhealthy habits.

thank you--that makes sense. I'm looking forward to feeling and looking and BEING better.

sarah

Sarah,

Here is an excellent article on detoxification by David Klein. This article appeared in an old issue of Living Nutrition Magazine.

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Detoxification

BY DAVID KLEIN - <DAVE@LIVINGNUTRITION.COM>

Many, if not most people, begin transitioning to a raw food diet when they are severely ill; some do so when they are attempting to recover from minor nagging illness symptoms; and still others make the change when they are free of symptoms. In all of these conditions, once the body begins to assimilate a higher proportion of natural raw foods, it initiates detoxification and health-building actions since it is always striving to establish a higher state of wellness.

The new, enzymatically-active live raw foods with their nutritious, energizing sugars cause the body to spring into action, utilizing much of its energy in cleaning house: purging debris, shedding old inferior cells, and using the new raw nutrients to build a completely new, healthier body. It is recommended that the transition be made gradually, to avoid triggering the uncomfortable symptoms that can accompany a drastic cleansing process. As long as there is vitality, the opportunity exists for the body to rejuvenate to a far more vigorous level of health. Results are often noticed within 24 hours of beginning a new healthful regimen.

Detoxification is a self-purifying process which the body carries out at all times, but most aggressively during the early to late morning hours. It is advantageous to eat lightly in the morning. Heavy foods eaten at this time suspend the cleansing process, keeping us toxic, and, in some cases, overweight. The process of "detox" entails: 1. the cells off-loading metabolic wastes and environmental toxins into the bloodstream for filtering by the liver and kidneys for elimination, and 2. the organs of elimination (bowels, kidneys, lungs, skin, vagina) releasing metabolic, environmental and residual food wastes via feces, urine, breath, sweat and menses. Toxins are also expectorated in mucus via the throat and sinuses.

Under normal conditions of healthful living and natural diet, the body is able to eliminate metabolic wastes and other environmental pollutants through its normal organs of elimination. However, under chronic excessive bombardment with unnatural dietary fare, environmental pollutants, emotional stress, and/or overeating on even good natural foods, the body's eliminative capacities are not equal to the task, and a buildup of toxins increases as the days and years go by. This condition, called toxicosis, leads to accelerated aging, fatigue, illness, and, in many cases, to obesity. In this condition of toxicity, which is particularly likely if one has lived on a diet of foods such as cooked meat, dairy, bread, and junk foods, the body harbors sticky and insoluble debris and waste matter on artery and bowel walls, as well as in the bloodstream, tissues, bowels, and organs.

Fortunately, the body is a magnificently designed masterpiece of self-regulation and self-healing, always striving to establish and maintain purity and wellness. When a toxic load becomes too dangerous for the body, it intelligently enacts a detoxification/elimination/purging/housecleaning event or phase, manifested by any of these "symptoms": sore throat, inflammation, fever, skin outbreaks, coated tongue, mucus expectoration, body aches, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Malodorous body wastes and underarms are signs that toxic putrid fermented matter and acids are being eliminated. During the detoxification phase, many people experience lightheadedness and headaches as the body stirs up and dumps toxins into the bloodstream for processing and elimination. During a thorough detox, unhealthy fat, cysts and even tumors are also broken down (autolyzed) and eliminated. As toxins are stirred up and released, the body relaxes and people also typically experience short-term symptoms of mental-emotional detox: mood swings, depression, sadness, anger, and crying.

When the organs of elimination are weak and/or overloaded, the body will resort to eliminating toxins through any convenient outlet it can find: e.g., the eyes, ears, throat, vagina, skin (sweating, rashes and suppurations), sinuses, and scalp. When we experience any of these signs of elimination, we typically feel fatigued and sleepy, as the body is directing much of its energy toward accomplishing the housecleaning.

At such times, it is always wise to assist the body by heeding the calls for extra rest and sleep. All of these "symptoms" will diminish and then vanish when the body is sufficiently cleaned out, providing we adhere to a healthful lifestyle regimen.

In conjunction with the heightened detoxification action, the body works at repairing any damage, regenerating new cells, rejuvenating and restoring wellness. The repair work mostly occurs when we sleep. When there is damage to be repaired and rejuvenation to be accomplished, the body needs extra sleep. We typically feel weak and need plenty of extra sleep in the beginning stage of the rejuvenation phase. If the toxemia, physical damage, degeneration and emotional distress is severe, this phase may last for weeks or months. It is important to understand that the symptoms of the detoxification and rejuvenation process signify the workings of the awesome rejuvenative power of the body. It will help the process if we appreciate the workings of the body and do everything possible to assist it in its healing processes. We can do this by taking a break or a sabbatical from our normal routines, obtaining plenty of extra sleep and rest if necessary, complete rest- as well as eating simply, until the work is sufficiently accomplished and we experience new vigor and vitality. It would be ideal to take the sabbatical at a comfortable health center or retreat with fasting supervision, juicing, deep rest and hygiene education.

If we persevere through the uncomfortable detox symptoms, get extra sleep and rest when feeling tired or unwell, and resist covering up symptoms with medicines (which only add more toxins to the system), we will arrive at a wonderful state of well being in the quickest time possible, and in the process, we will learn invaluable lessons about how the body works to restore health. Some of the rewards include freedom from illness, sweet smelling breath, no body odors, easy and inoffensive elimination, shinier, thicker hair, clearer eyes and skin, more mental energy and clarity, better memory, more joie de vivre, slimmer belly, no cellulite, greater stamina, deeper connection to spirit, and finding a mutual attraction with healthy, vivacious people like ourselves. Through healthful living practices which keep our bodies clean inside and free of energy-robbing toxic matter, we can ensure a healthier, longer, more vital and youthful life, free ourselves from disease and aging, and tap into the wellspring of joy within.